Bristows AI Document Chatbot

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Solution Strategy ​

Multi-Layered Architecture ​

a) Presentation Layer ​

  • Technologies: Nuxt.js with Tailwind CSS

  • Description: The Presentation Layer is responsible for the user interface and user experience. It utilizes Nuxt.js, a powerful Vue.js framework, to build server-side rendered and static web applications, providing a seamless and performant user interface. Tailwind CSS is employed for designing responsive, modern, and consistent UI components with utility-first CSS.

b) Frontend-Backend Communication ​

  • Technologies: Fetch API for HTTP requests

  • Description: The frontend communicates with the backend through RESTful APIs. HTTP requests are made from the Nuxt.js frontend to the FastAPI backend to perform operations such as document uploads, user authentication, and AI query processing. This separation allows for clear demarcation between the frontend and backend, promoting modularity and scalability.

c) Business Logic Layer ​

  • Technologies: FastAPI, Celery

  • Description: The Business Logic Layer handles the core functionality and business rules of the application. FastAPI, a modern, fast (high-performance) web framework for building APIs with Python, is used to implement the business logic. Celery is utilized for handling asynchronous tasks and background jobs, such as processing document uploads, running AI models, and sending notifications.

d) Data Access Layer ​

  • Technologies: Supabase DB, SQLAlchemy ORM

  • Description: The Data Access Layer is responsible for managing data persistence and retrieval. Supabase DB, an open-source Firebase alternative, provides the database services. SQLAlchemy, a SQL toolkit and Object-Relational Mapping (ORM) library for Python, is used to interact with the database, allowing for efficient querying, data manipulation, and schema management.

e) Task Management and Message Brokering ​

  • Technologies: Celery, Redis

  • Description: Celery is used for managing asynchronous tasks and background processing, ensuring that long-running operations do not block the main application workflow. Redis, an in-memory data structure store, serves as the message broker for Celery, facilitating fast and reliable task queue management.

Benefits of Multi-Layered Architecture ​

a) Separation of Concerns: Each layer has a distinct responsibility, which promotes cleaner and more maintainable code. The Presentation Layer handles UI, the Business Logic Layer processes requests, and the Data Access Layer manages data operations.

b) Scalability: The architecture allows for horizontal scaling. Each layer can be scaled independently based on load and demand, enhancing the overall scalability of the application.

c) Modularity: Modularity enables developers to work on different layers simultaneously without causing conflicts. This accelerates development and simplifies debugging and testing processes.

d) Maintainability: With a clear separation between the frontend and backend, updates or changes can be made to one part of the application without affecting the others. This makes the application easier to maintain and extend over time.

e) Reusability: Components and services within each layer can be reused across different parts of the application. For instance, the same backend API can serve multiple frontend clients, including web, mobile, and desktop applications.

f) Enhanced Security: By separating the presentation from the business logic and data access layers, sensitive business logic and data operations are kept secure on the server-side, reducing the risk of exposing critical parts of the application.

g) Performance: Each layer can be optimized independently. For example, the Business Logic Layer can be optimized for processing speed, while the Presentation Layer can focus on delivering a fast and responsive user experience.

h) Flexibility: The architecture supports the integration of various technologies and frameworks. For instance, if a more efficient database technology becomes available, it can be integrated into the Data Access Layer with minimal changes to the other layers.

Azure Cloud Services Utilised ​

a) Azure App Service: Azure App Service is a fully managed platform for building, deploying, and scaling web apps. It supports multiple programming languages and frameworks, including Node.js, which is used for hosting the Nuxt.js frontend of your application. Azure App Service provides built-in load balancing, auto-scaling, and high availability, ensuring that your web application remains responsive and accessible to users.

b) Azure Virtual Machines (VMs): Azure Virtual Machines provide scalable computing resources that can be used to run a variety of applications and services. In your architecture, VMs are used to host Celery workers and Redis. Celery handles background processing tasks such as document uploads and AI processing, while Redis serves as the message broker for Celery, enabling fast and reliable task queue management. VMs offer flexibility in terms of configuration and scalability, allowing you to adjust resources based on workload demands.

c) Azure Document Intelligence: Azure Document Intelligence (formerly known as Form Recognizer) is a cloud-based service that uses machine learning to extract information from documents. It can analyse and parse various document types, such as PDFs and images, to extract structured data. In your application, Azure Document Intelligence is used to analyse uploaded legal documents, providing valuable insights and automating data extraction tasks, thereby reducing manual effort and improving accuracy.

d) Azure Open AI: Azure Open AI is a powerful artificial intelligence service that provides access to advanced language models, including those developed by OpenAI. This service enables your application to process natural language queries, generate responses, and perform various AI-driven tasks. In your application, Azure Open AI powers the AI chat interface, allowing users to interact with uploaded documents and retrieve information through natural language queries. It enhances user experience by providing accurate and contextually relevant responses.

e) Supabase (Self-Hosted): Supabase is an open-source alternative to Firebase that offers a suite of tools for building and scaling applications. It provides a PostgreSQL database, authentication, real-time subscriptions, and storage. In your application, a self-hosted instance of Supabase is used for the Data Access Layer, managing data persistence and retrieval. Supabase’s integration with SQLAlchemy ORM allows for efficient database interactions, ensuring data integrity and performance.